Prologue

So....This all came together the first week of June this year. I have some friends who have run marathons in the past so I knew it would take around 18 weeks of training.

I looked for a local race and found the Chickamaugua Battlefield Marathon which is the second weekend in November. This was great, about 24 or so weeks away, not a lot of travel, and not SUPER intimidating.

So here is the plan. 4 weeks to train for the Peachtree Road Race (10k), a week in-between and then week 1 of marathon training. I am utilizing the Hal Higdon 18 week novice program (http://www.halhigdon.com/marathon/novices.html). The schedule recommends a training base of about 9 months. I think I will be alright because I have been doing a lot of other things to stay active including my elliptical.

The first two weeks of Peachtree training were pretty smooth sailing. There is a super hilly 3.5 mile course in my neighborhood. I felt like if I can master this course I should be fine for the Peachtree. This strategy worked well until week 3. I have learned that it is not a good idea to run the same course over and over again without any variety. I had been concerned that I may get injured in the process of this, so I have not told too many people. Additionally, I had bought a cheap pair of running shoes to just get after it.

After some aches and pains popped up, I decided to go get a real pair of running shoes. I went to Big Peach (http://www.bigpeachrunningco.com/) and got fitted for the right pair of shoes. I had no idea that running shoes only last 500 - 600 miles. I had realized that if I am going to embark on this adventure, I need to take care of my body starting with my feet.

Despite the new shoes, my week 4 is where is really got tough. Traditionally I had been running 3-Tue, 3-Wed, 3-Thur, long on Saturday. To ramp up for the 10k on Sunday, I decided to run 3-Tue, 4-Wed (super hilly), 2-Thur. The 4 miles on Wednesday killed me. I finished, but I was suffering serious chin pain. With ice, massage, and ibuprofen I suffered through the 2 miles on Sunday. I was hopeful that I could recover in time for the race on Sunday.

At the expo for the race I decided to buy some compression sleeves for my legs. With the same treatment as before, I was ready to tackle the Peachtree. Sunday came around and I was pumped up. I went to the race hoping to finish it in an hour, but I was so under trained, I had no idea.